


A House is Not a Home

by lornrocks



Category: Fandom: Heroes
Genre: Angst, I don't know, M/M, petlar, pylar, singing and stuff, themortalitydilemma
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-06-24
Updated: 2013-06-24
Packaged: 2017-12-16 00:51:30
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,819
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/855894
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lornrocks/pseuds/lornrocks
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>
  <i>He supposes that if he actually thought about it, the reason he doesn't want to go home anymore is because it brings too many memories, and its empty state doesn't exactly help his melancholy mood, either.</i>
</p>
            </blockquote>





	A House is Not a Home

Peter's shift at the hospital had been over for over half an hour, and yet he found himself no more eager to go home than he was when he had bid good bye to Hesam and headed out of the locker room.

Instead, he sat in the rec room, lights dimmed, at the piano. No one was around since it was so late, so he doesn't think anyone will mind him wallowing for a little while.

He supposes that if he actually thought about it, the reason he doesn't want to go home anymore is because it brings too many memories, and its empty state doesn't exactly help his melancholy mood, either.

With a sigh, he opens the lid to the piano, a simple upright one, and stares down thoughtfully at the keys. Reaching a hand out timidly, he presses down on some keys, letting out a single note. He hasn't played in years, since he was still in high school and his mom wanted him to take piano lessons. He was alright at it, but he really preferred guitar, which he picked up in college (mostly to get girls to notice him, and boy, did that work out well).

It's here he notices the sheet music abandoned on top of the piano. He retrieves it, setting it up so he can read it. It takes him a bit to remember, but he manages to start to play the song. He remembers this song, somehow, from somewhere; although where exactly, he's not sure.

Maybe it's from endless nights spent staring at the stars while old music wafts softly on the air from an old radio that _someone_ had salvaged and fixed for him.

Quietly, very quietly, he begins to sing along with his playing, words that ring more true than he even could realize:

_A room is still a room_  
even when there's nothing there but gloom.  
But a room is not a house,  
and a house is not a home  
when the two of us are far apart  
and one of us  
has a broken heart... 

Biting his lip, he tries to stifle the sudden onslaught of emotion the song is bringing in him, and concentrates on playing out the music. When he gets to the end of the song, he softly starts to sing along again, so quiet he can barely hear it himself.

_Darling have a heart,_  
Don't let one mistake  
keep us apart.  
I'm not meant to live alone,  
turn this house into a home  
when i climb the stair  
and turn the key please be there.  
Still in love with me... 

His hands slide off the keys and he stares down at them, trying to think of anything but what was currently taking over his thoughts. He's so focused that he doesn't even see Emma, who is standing in the doorway and watching him.

"You seem sad," she says, at last, and he looks up, surprised.

"What makes you say that?" he asks, throwing on the smile he usually wears while talking to his friend.

She smiles sadly and motions vaguely above the piano.

"Music never lies," she replies simply, and Peter understands. Emma had seen the lights and colors from his playing, and must have known somehow (possibly with the gorgeous gift of hers) that the music he was playing wasn't exactly happy.

She comes over and sits next to him on the piano bench, so much like that night that Peter had given her the princess crown to wear, except this time, Peter was the one who needed cheering up.

"You look like you haven't slept in weeks. Is this about Gabriel?"

Peter is completely taken aback by Emma's bluntness, but he's not surprised. She was always very intuitive.

"Yes," he admits, and at her gently prompting, continues.

"After we saved you from the carnival, he had stayed with me for a few months while things cooled off. And..." his face suddenly flushes as he tries to formulate the next few words. "We sort of got... _involved_ with each other. I guess spending so much time alone together did wonders for forgetting our past because...well..." He trails off and Emma puts a hand on his shoulder.

"I get it. What happened?"

Peter shakes his head but forces himself to look at Emma so she can see his mouth.

"We got in some stupid fight because he decided I should have a 'normal' life...find a boyfriend who isn't immortal to spend my life with. I told him he was just scared to get close enough to someone, someone he could lose. I guess it wasn't the right thing to say."

Emma's hand squeezes Peter's shoulder and he goes on.

"He moved out while I was at work. He left a note saying he didn't want me to waste my life. I have no idea where he is now, and I just-" Peter's throat tightens and he closes his eyes.

"I miss him. So much. I just want him back, I don't even care who's right or who's not anymore. I love him." He opens his eyes and sees Emma's own eyes are shiny with tears.

"You have to find him, Peter," she says, and he shakes his head.

"How do you propose I do that? Put an ad on Craigslist?" he frowns and wipes clumsily at the tears that have managed to sneak down his cheeks.

She takes both of Peter's hands in her own and squeezes.

"Take my ability, and call him to you. Then you can tell him what you just told me."

"Emma..."

"Peter."

Her stern gaze is enough to make him quiet his protestations. He leans forward and hugs her, before pulling back and planting a kiss on her forehead.

"What would I do without you?" he asks, and she smiles.

"Mope in the rec room in the dark," she teases, and he actually smiles for the first time in...weeks, probably.

"Can I borrow that violin you got last month?" he asks, and sure enough, she agrees.

Two hours later he finds himself standing by an open window in his apartment, the one with the fire escape, violin and bow in hand.

With a sigh, he closes his eyes and brings the bow to strings, imagining all the things he wants to say as he plays, letting Emma's ability take over.

He's not sure how long he's been standing there, playing the same song over and over again when he hears a thump coming from outside the window.

He lowers the violin, but doesn't dare open his eyes. A part of him is afraid, but more than anything, he doesn't want to open his eyes just to find emptiness and more loneliness.

"I missed you," he whispers, opening his eyes slowly. The figure standing on the fire escape begins to move, pulling itself through the window and into Peter's apartment.

"Peter," Gabriel begins, but Peter shakes his head and holds up a hand.

"I don't care if you're right, or that you're afraid, or even that I'm pathetic. I need you, okay? I've just spent something like five and a half years with you straight, and then you up and leave, and I'm left here with this gaping hole in my chest." He steps forward, bringing himself closer to the other man.

Peter carefully sets Emma's violin down in its case, sitting on a nearby end table, before continuing.

"No matter where you go, my heart will always be with you." He takes another step, until there's barely any room between their bodies. "I love you."

Gabriel's dark eyes regard him carefully, as if measuring for the truth in his words. When no tell-tale tingle comes, Gabriel, once standing so tall and indifferent, actually relaxes visibly.

"Oh," he says, simply, and pulls Peter in to a careful, lingering kiss. One kiss turns into five more and they find themselves entwined together on Peter's bed, with Gabriel's legs hooked around Peter's hips as they rock together, Peter's face buried in the other man's neck.

Afterwards, Peter can't help smiling as the fairy lights hung around the border of his bedroom light up and soft music begins playing from the radio on the bedside table. He laces their fingers together.

"If you leave me like that again Emma will kill you," he muses, and Gabriel chuckles.

"I'd like to see that woman even attempt to be violent."

Peter sits up on his elbow so he can look down and his reclining bed mate.

"Oh, she'll definitely do it. She'll keep killing you over and over again until she runs out of ways to kill you or gets bored."

"Oh, I'm shaking," Gabriel snorts, and they share a laugh before the smile fades from Peter's face. When Gabriel notices, he rolls to his side and mimic's Peter's position.

"I promise Peter, I'm not leaving again. Ever."

Peter's eyes flutter closed and he leans forward until their foreheads are touching.

"I wish I could promise you the same thing," he whispers, barely audible, and Gabriel's grip on Peter's fingers tightens.

"Don't...just don't. Don't say that," he sputters, and reaches up to rub away a stray tear that is inching down Peter's cheek. Swallowing, his says, "Look at me."

When Peter opens his eyes, Gabriel slides his free hand up to cup his cheek.

"I will find a way to fix your broken empathy, Peter. Then you can take healing and we can be together always, no more of this-"

Peter interrupts him.

"I just don't know if I want to- see everyone, everyone I love- just, die in front of my eyes. See the world change, everything changing while I don't..."

Gabriel pulls his hand away and he tugs his hand out from Peter's hold.

"Gabriel."

Gabriel stops trying to get out of the bed long enough to look at Peter.

"I'm not sure if want to, but I'm going to. Because I love you enough that I'm willing to put that aside so you're never alone. Okay?"

He shakes his head and starts to stand up.

"I'm not going to let you put yourself through the same pain I have, Peter, just so-"

Peter crawls across the bed and grabs his arm, preventing him from leaving.

"Stop it. This is what started this whole fight, remember? We're past this. We're better than this."

They lock eyes for a moment, not flinching, before Gabriel nods once.

"Okay," he says, then licking his lips, adds another "okay" for good measure. He lets Peter tug him back into their bed, where he very promptly attempts to hold Gabriel down with his own body.

"I don't deserve you, Pete," he sighs, and Peter lightly nips at the other man's neck before planting a kiss in the same spot.

"Shut up and go to sleep, babe."

"I love you."

"I love you too."

**Author's Note:**

> Written forever ago on LJ.


End file.
